Enoch rector



Sept. 22, 1931. E. RECTOR 1,824,297

INTERNAL COMBUSTION ENGINE Original Filed March 20, 1923 I I INVENTOR 1 Emach/ Re oior ATTORNEYS I valid/ Patented sq 22, 1931" UNITED TA E-s PATENT OFFICE I ENOCH HECTOR, OF YORK, N. Y.,,A SSIGNOR TO WAUKESHA MOTOR COMPANY, OF

WAUK ESJI A, WISCONSIN, A CORPORATION OF WISCONSIN i INTERNAL COMBUSTION nivemn Application filedliarch 20, 1923, Serial No. 626,255. Renewed January as, 1927.

The invention relates to an improved means for firing the gaseous fuel charge in an internal combustion engine and more specifically relates to an improved form of gas passageway constituting part'of the explosive chamber in the head of such an engine. It is an approved practice in firing charges in the explosivechamber of an internal combustion engine to fire the charge at a plurality of points, either simultaneously or preferably in rapid sequence, and this multiple firing of the charge is usually attained by providing a plurality ofspark plugs organized to function in rapid sequence. Spark plugs possess certain well known objections and multiplying theirnumber obviously ina creases their objectionable features and furplemental firing instrumentality which will provide an instrument which ther, sequential, multiple firing instrumentali'ties of this type have not proven' entirely satisfactory from a practical standpoint.

The present disclosure features the use of a single spark plug and in its operation otherwise follows conventional practice inorder to inaugurate the flame propagation through the compressed gaseous charge in the explosive chamber. 1 The primary object of the invention is to provide a simple form of supnot possess the objectionable features, of a spark-plug, and which will function automatically following the inauguration of the increased pressure caused by the firing of the spark plugs in orderto ignite a different part of the fuel charge.- Another object is to ill be free of moving parts and which will not require the use of any electrical or other orce and which will be controlled in its operation by the spark plug or other initial igniting instrumentality.

It has been known in the art of firing internal combustion engine charges to utilize the compression on the charge resulting from the compression stroke of the piston to raise the temperatureof a body of gas ,in a hot chamber to the firing point and thus cause the piston in its gas compression act to fire 'the 'charge automatically. This mode of firing the gas charge has not proven satisfactory, among other reasons due to irregularity in period of firing and to the frequent Aside from this some outside heating means, 4

usually an exposed flame, is required to heat the gas chamber but such apparatus necessitates the use of exposed flames and flame de-- vices on automotive equipment cannot pass the requirement of the fire underwriters.

Accordingly another object of the invention is to provides; simple form of fuel charge ignitor which does not require the use of flames. or in vfact of any other source of heat except the heat normally present in the explosive chamber. On the contrary the present disclosure features an air cooled ignitor of the gas compression type in distinction from the usual heated ignitor.

Variousother objects and advantages of the invention will be in part obvious from" an inspection of the accompanying drawing and I in part will be more fully set forth in the following particular description of one form of mechanism embodying my invention, and

,the invention also consists in certain new and novel features .of construction and combination of parts hereinafter set forth and claimed; r i s I In the accompanying 'drawing:

The figure is a sectional view taken axially through the upper portion of a piston cylinder of an internal combustion engine equipped with a preferred embodiment of the Invention.

- In the drawing there is shown a piston cyldescribed is intended to represent conven-- tional constructions.

.The central portion ofthe head 13 is re-- stricted to the single wall 12 to provide an air cooling pocket 17 surrounded by the water cooled wall 18 forming part of the water jacket. The portion 19 of the wall 12 out lining the bottomoof the pocket 17 is provided with a threaded opening20. A thin walled tube 2-1 has its inner, opened end 22 in screw threaded engagement with the opening 20; extends through the pocket 17 and projects beyond the outlines ofLthe engine head for variable distances as hereinafter deand at a temperature such that the compressionwave from the initial firing by the spark plug will cause the temperature of the gases at the mouth of the tube to be raised to their firing temperature. i

In the operation of an internal combustion engine, the heat from the combustion in the explosive chamber,,of course, rapidly heats the head and adjacent parts, of the' piston cylinder. In the present instance this heat is communicated to the compression tube to heat the gas contained therein. However, unless special efforts are made to reduce the temperatures of the gases inthe .compression tube, the device would function erratically in the manner which rendered the old flame heated igniters so objectionable. the present disclosure the tube is air cooled by its contact with the external air and is somewhat cooled at its inner end due to the cooling efl'ect of the adjacent water jacket. It therefore results that the compression tube must be designed to meet the requirement of the particular engine with which it is to be installed. If the tube is too short it will become excessively heated and will fire on the compression stroke of the piston, and on the contrary if it is too, long the gases therein will be excessively cooled and the device will not function as anignitor in .the manner hereinafter described. It is therefore necessary to provide'a tube of those dimensions .which will maintain this thermostatic balance during the actuation of the engine so that it will not fire automatically simply due to normal compression .but willfire undernormal compression plus the compression caused by the initial firing by the spark plug at each cycle of operations. 2 Q In operation and with the proper proportioned tube the charge is fired by the single spark plug as is usual in such constructions.

A compression wave is started through the gas 1 1 charge from the spark plug and in advance I 05' of the front flame. This compression wave further compresses the gas in the compression chamber to such an extent that it will raise the temperature of the gas therein to or above the firing point of the gases thus causing the gen-- eration of a second flame at'the open end of front is thus started through the charg e from the mouth of the tube. It is obviouslyjwithin the scope of the disclosure to rovide a plurality of spark plugs and a .p urality of the compression chambers herein disclosed in those cases where an extremely rapid flame propagation is desired. Due to the. closed dome efl'ect of the compression chamber the inert previously fired gases willbe trapped in I the closed end but this will tend to stabilize the physicalc'ondition of the gas in the compression chamber and when the length of the tube has been once fixed it will continue to function as an ignitor without further attention. i

It hasbeen found that knocking and preignition has been eliminated, presumably due .to the fact that a bodyofinert gas becomes trapped in the close end of the tube 21 and acts as a cushion to receive the peak of the com 'pression wave at the start of the-firing action.

The tube 21 is disposed substantially at right angles to the explosion chamber, as illustrabed. -Upon ignition of the fuel charge in the tube, a sheet of flame is projected down- Wardly across the advancing kinetic pressure wave and serves to neutralize such wave. In

this manner, the kinetic pressure wave is neu-' tralized, or reduced, to a very material extent resulting in much smoother oper tion of the engine, with a resulting increase 1 efliciency. In engines of large type, two or more'tubes may be employed, as above stated, and these tubes will' act to successively neutralize the kinetic pressure wave as it advances into the explosion chamber in the cylinder.

I the compression chamber. A second flame Having thus described my invention,

claim In an internal combustion engine, the combination of an explosion chamber,'means for initially igniting the charge, and an. unobstructed tube closed at its outer end and having its inner endopening into the chamber beyond the point of initial ignition of the charge in the direction of the cylinder.

. Signed at New York city in the county'of New York and'State of New York this 1st day of March A. D. 1923.

- ENOCH RECTOR. 

